Author: Karly Lane
ISBN: 978-1-76029-689-6
RRP: $29.99
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
Copy: Courtesy of the Publisher
Someone Like You is the latest release by Karly Lane, an author I have been following for a few years now. I haven’t read all of her books but I have tried to keep up with the ones which have been released since I discovered her.
I have always found Karly Lane novels to be a little quirky, contain more than a hint of humour and often draw inspiration from Australia’s history. In these respects, Someone Like You fits perfectly in the Karly Lane catalogue, but this one has something extra, something deeper and I was completely enthralled.
Hayley Stevens is a Sydney author who is recovering from the breakdown of her marriage and suffering writer’s block with her agent calling to chase the opening chapters of the new book. She decided that a fresh start was in order and ended up buying a house in a small country town basically on impulse. She had stayed in the town as part of a Writer’s Festival and fallen in love with it.
I really liked Hayley as a character but I think one of the things that really drew me to her was she’s an author who has just moved from the city to a small country town. She gave us an insight into the publishing industry and the writing process, and I couldn’t help but draw comparisons in the early chapters. I couldn’t help but wonder how much of Karly Lane found her way into Hayley Stevens, how much they had in common and how much of what frustrates or drives Stevens are issues Lane has. It certainly kept me thinking as I was sinking deeper and deeper into the narrative.
Karly Lane writes beautiful small towns and she loves a small town with history which can be woven into her contemporary storyline. Lochway is a tiny town with a huge history that is explored thoroughly. It is a town in close proximity to St Albans, which Lane discovered and was enchanted by, that was settled around the time of the first settlers.
What we know of history is only what has been recorded and what’s been passed down through the generations. There are no eyewitnesses left to attest to the truth so how do we truly know that recorded history is correct?
There was so much to love about Someone Like You and I really did. The characters are lovable and diverse, there’s some definite quirkiness happening here, and not all of her characters are people.
Hayley is a city girl through and through but she moves to the small town and starts collecting animals, even before she checks out whether she has anywhere secure to keep them. Quirky personalities aren’t limited to the human characters either, the menagerie that Hayley collects is filled with personality and she talks to them all.
The romantic storyline also contained its fair share of humour, and tragic near misses. The chemistry sizzled off the page but Lane reminds us that sometimes chemistry isn’t enough to ensure a happy ever after. Lane writes great steam without gratuitous details and a minimum of questionable language; which is something I wouldn’t usually even notice unless it was excessive but it was brought up as a discussion this week on Facebook.
I am struggling with this review because there is a whole element I don’t want to touch on so I am not quite sure what to say. An element that is a little out there but I really enjoyed and one that has always fascinated me. It was interesting to come across it and I really enjoyed the way that Karly Lane explored it.
Someone Like You has past and present colliding, an exploration of history, a tree change and an amusing and insightful look at the life of a work-at-home-full-time-author. Lane shines a light on small town gossip, PTSD in returned servicemen and reserving judgement to make up your own mind rather than being turned off by gossip.
I love this story, I love these characters and though we have an epilogue I would love to see this town and these people revisited so I could learn about the fallout and all the things that came about after the events of Someone Like You. I would recommend this one to anyone who loves some humour with their romance and doesn’t need a HEA Guarantee.
Someone Like You is book #20 for the Australian Women Writer’s Challenge 2018.
Karly Lane loves to hear from her readers, you can find her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and her Website.
Someone Like You is published by Allen & Unwin and available now from Angus & Robertson Bookworld, Booktopia and where all good books are sold.
Thanks to Allen & Unwin 50 of our Beauty and Lace Club members are reading Someone Like You so please be aware there may be spoilers in the comments below.
I devour books, vampires and supernatural creatures are my genre of choice but over the past couple of years, I have broadened my horizons considerably. In a nutshell – I love to write! I love interacting with a diverse range of artists to bring you interviews. Perhaps we were perfect before – I LOVE WORDS!
Karly Lane has become one of my favourite authors after receiving Third Time Lucky as a Beauty and Lace Book Club read way back then. I have now read everyone of them and this one would have to be one of my favourites.
I love how Karly Lane transports you to these beautiful towns out in rural Australia and makes them seem like a dream place to live but still shows the reality of country living. This book is set in the small town of Lochway which is a small town with a lot of history dating back to the settlers 200 years ago.
Someone Like You follows the story of Hayley Stevens who is a writer of crime novels and has had a lot of success in her career but not so much in her personal life so she decides to make a change and buys a beautiful country property when she comes across it for sale after having stayed there previously. Its a big move but it’s the change she needs to take hold of her life again. An unfortunate incident with her adopted donkey in a neighbour’s dam means that she makes a startling introduction to her next door neighbour Luke Mason who’s family have farmed the land since the original settlement of the area. The chemistry between them is instant but their romance is far from smooth sailing. This book explores so many interesting topics and themes and I was so in love with it that I read it in less than a day. I also loved all the characters human and animal alike.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a good rural Aussie story with a bit of romance.
Thanks to Beauty and Lace and Allen and Unwin for giving me the chance to read this great book.
‘Someone like you’ was a lovely story to read. It wasn’t just your average romance novel because there was also the story about the past life experiences. I loved the characters of Hayley and Luke – they weren’t flaky and just seemed like normal people, unlike sometimes when authors make characters who sound so out of touch with reality. Jason’s character was intriguing and I’d love to hear more about his side of the story and what happens to him in the future. We got a small taste of what happened between him and Luke, but it wasn’t enough for me.
I really appreciated that there was an epilogue because as I was getting towards the end of the story I could feel myself getting prepared to be disappointed. You know, happy ending and the suddenly the story stops and you think to yourself that you just wanted to know what happened next. I would love to read a second follow-up story about Hayley and Luke to see if there were any more past life Karly Lane, Jason’s story could be included in that too!
Thanks Beauty and Lace for another great book to read >:o)
Thank you for the opportunity to read Someone Like You by Karly Lane.
This is an Australian country romance set in the town of Lochway. Hayley Stevens used to live in Sydney but with a huge life change she made one of her own by moving to the country. She picked a place she’d only been to once before, and when the place she’d stayed at came on the market she took a chance. Hayley seems to take very well to all the animals she accumulates by chance, but not so much to other changes that are happening.
Then she meets her neighbour Luke Mason in different circumstances. From the start it seems they’re meant to be, but they almost miss the mark many times. It also seems they don’t learn each time and even though they have chemistry will it be enough?
I enjoyed reading about the town, the quirky animals and Luke’s family who could be called the same. It was interesting to read about their farm’s diversification, the family history and how everything affected everything else.
I would love to see another book on these characters and revisit the town again.
I LOVED IT – Someone Like You is just delightful and so easy to read with a wonderful sense of history and humour. I love Australian historical fiction and while this definitely isn’t historical fiction, there is a lot of history in the novel. The way the area of St. Albans is portrayed is lovely – you get the feel of the country atmosphere and the wonderful Australian bushland woven with the well drawn characters.
I knew I was going to love this book when I read the Acknowledgements first and read “The old inn at St Albans is a truly remarkable building, and I swear I could hear the walls whispering their stories to me the moment I walked inside.” I can relate so much to that so I had no difficulty with believing Hayley’s visions and her link to the past.
I loved the stories within the story. I loved the information about the difficulty Hayley was having getting her new novel on track and the way Karly Lane let us into the world of an author. It really is a very satisfying book, wonderful from the first glimpse of the lovely cover through to the last word. I loved the way Hayley wasn’t daunted by the off hand treatment from some of the local inhabitants and especially the way she accumulated her animal menagerie.
There was absolutely nothing in this book I didn’t enjoy and I thank Beauty and Lace and Allen and Unwin so much for the opportunity to read and thoroughly enjoy this Karly Lane masterpiece. It’s wonderful to have Australian women writing so beautifully about the Australian landscape and characters and bringing history into the mix. Karly Lane, this is a fabulous book. Thank you!
Thanks to Beauty and Lace and Allen & Unwin Publishers for sending this book out for review. An out of the ordinary tale of country life was told lovingly by author Karly Lane in ‘Someone Like You’.
I found the book a delight as it ventured into a unpredictable storyline, getting away from the typical scorned love who ventures to the country for a new life to hopefully find new love. The author showed great skill in depicting well rounded characters and describing the refreshing country scenery.
I loved the eccentricities of the main character Hayley Stevens who seems to accumulate an oddball collection of stray and needy animals on her newly acquired farm. Her relationship with neighbour Luke Mason was a complicated one and I truly thought there were too many obstacles before them to get it together. I found Hayley’s friendship with recluse and ex army soldier Jason, heart warming.
My only question mark was the ending. I just found Hayley’s acceptance of Luke’s apology too contrived. The happily ever after scenario too quick. Oh well you can’t please everyone.
I loved the convict twist in the storyline and readers will get a thrill out of reading this novel.
Absolutely loved everything about this book! It was so easy to read and I especially loved that it never dragged on at all and every chapter jumped straight into the next without leaving you lingering in between.
When I started to get to the end I was thinking hmm….. its got a few pages to go but how is the ending going to fit in? I needn’t have worried.
I like the whole story and what Hayley and Luke were going through was so different to other storylines.
The ways of the people in the country and how some greeted Hayley was so real and thought Hayleys way with Jason showed how she handled people well.
I did look back to the cover and thought perhaps they could have put curly hair on the picture and also found myself looking up close to the cover to see if she really did have blue eyes haha stupid I know but this story was really that good!!
I don’t know if anyone else noticed but on page 131 at about half way down it says… She ran, knowing no one would believe her or even care if she’d told them what he’d been dong to her…? I think doing is supposed to be doing. This is not the first book I have noticed a spelling error in but it had me retracing the sentence a few times.
10 out of 10 for this book as it was refreshing and not at all what I expected. I found myself having a few quick laugh out loud moments especially with their thoughts and awkward moments.
A MUST READ and am so lucky I got chosen to read this true and earthy book. Huge thanks Beauty & Lace, Allen and Unwin and most of all Karly Lane as you are an author with talent beyond. And yes I now know how Lukes sister in law feels 🙂
Typing error….. I think dong is supposed to be doing
I love Karly’s books and this one was amazing!! I couldn’t put it down, I really enjoyed the supernatural side to it.
Someone Like You is the first book of Karly Lane’s that I have read and it won’t be the last. I loved Karley’s warmhearted and entertaining writing style.
Her characters were really believable and it was great getting to know them as the story developed. I really enjoyed the country setting and the historical aspects tied in with past lives.
There was never a dull moment as Hayley adapted to country life, cared for her increasing number of farm animals, tried to write a novel, negotiated a new romance and dealt with her unsettling visions.
I really loved this book.. Thankyou for choosing me to read Someone Like You.
Thanks to Beauty and Lace and Allen and Unwin for the pleasure of reading this book. I loved loved loved it. Thanks to Karly’s great storytelling I could picture the farm with the menagerie of animals that Hayley manages to collect thru out the book and the quaint country settings. Enjoyed the way the past met the present thru Edward and Jane to Luke and Hayley. Just an all round ripper read – thanks once again Karly Lane – 5/5 stars ✅all the boxes.
Thanks to Beauty and Lace and Allen & Unwin Publishers for introducing me to Karly Lane.
I haven’t read any Karly Lane books before but I am keen to try some of her others. I really enjoyed getting to know Hayley the main character as she bumped through life following her relationship breakup. I love the description of the small town and the link between the past and the future. All the animals made me chuckle and Hayley is the sort of person of love to be around in real life.
The book ended far too quickly for me and there was a few characters I would of loved to have been explored more, but overall it was a very enjoyable and easy read.